


Someday at Sunset

by cloudy_skies



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Dreaming, M/M, Post-Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance, Rescue, Training
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-28
Updated: 2014-01-28
Packaged: 2018-01-10 08:18:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1157284
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cloudy_skies/pseuds/cloudy_skies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"You made us a promise, that you would always be there to bring us back." Yes, he made that promise, but Lea still had yet to understand that it wasn't just Roxas who needed saving, he needed it too.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Someday at Sunset

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by: "Diamond" by Alan, "Four Seasons" by Namie Amuro, "If" by Kana Nishino
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or anything else written that is related to the Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy franchise, they respectfully belong to Square Enix.
> 
> A/N: Reposting from my FanFic account because I was a little surprised that I forgot to upload it on here. Well, now it can join the family. This was written on 7/23/2012 so this is a bit old, just saying.

On the outskirts of Twilight Town in the open fields, two keyblade apprentices swung their weapons at each other—the sound of thick metal on metal clashing sharply with each encounter the blades met at. Finally one swing too hard had the girl squealing, nearly tripping backwards but she was able to find her footing and was brought to a flimsy halt. The next thing that happened was the taller and more agile of the two, who stood there before her, began to laugh teasingly.

"Watch it Lea! You could have actually hurt me!" Kairi huffed, her keyblade gripped tightly in her small hands while she stood there hunched over and feeling a little tired. Reaching up to wipe the sweat accumulating on her temple, she proceeded to glare at the male standing across the field from her.

"Pft, whatever you say princess." The tall red head shot back at her, his lips curled up into a familiar smirk as he twirled his own keyblade expertly in his right hand. It wasn't as easy as fighting with his chakram's but he could make do, and he was quite determined to master this newfound weapon of his—a gift he believed was granted to him by the shadow of their hero.

The girl furrowed her brows even further, lips pouting in contrast to the sneering expression on her companion's face.

"Now don't give me that look," Lea sighed, 'It reminds me of him, the way he used to get upset with me.' He thought to himself. "You asked me to practice with you, and I am. No need to get all grumpy just because I decided to step it up a notch."

"Fine…" she mumbled dejectedly.

"Way to ruin the mood princess."

"Lea, quit picking on Kairi. You know she's still new to all of this." A voice came from behind the tall male.

"Well, well, hey ya there master Riku." The red head said without turning to look at the approaching silverette.

"Riku!" Kairi's demeanor quickly changed and she was instantly by his side. "Have you heard anything about Sora? Does Yen Sid have any clues?"

The older boy shook his head, causing the girl's face to fall as she stared at the ground instead of braving the waters to look up at the blank expression on her childhood friend's face.

"Nothing huh? Figures..." Lea mumbled.

"He'll come back, I'm certain of it. All we have to do is wait for him." Riku stated firmly, his voice strong and reassuring but it was more or less his own way of telling himself that things would be okay and that there was nothing to worry about.

"That lazy bum better come back… He still has my wayfinder…" the girl whispered softly, her sad eyes hidden from view behind her long burgundy colored bangs. The words she said were merely a disguise to hide her worries, and both her companions knew that, though they didn't want to say anything to confront her about it.

The mood suddenly dropped and it was none too pleasing on Lea's end but he could understand where all of the gloom was coming from. Their boisterous hero, Sora about two months ago had went and gone back to retake his Mark of Mastery exam but as of yet hadn't returned. No one understood why, and it was worrisome on their part. According to Donald and Goofy, they waited at the entrance of Yen Sid's tower, expecting to see the said brunet in only a couple of hours but after two days it just didn't feel right. Riku had gone back into the realm of sleep in search of his dear friend, but returned with no luck. There were absolutely no traces of Sora being there from what Riku could gather. Even with the help of his Dream Eater friends, it was like the hero had upped and vanished out of existence from the realm of sleep.

Though no one wanted to believe it, Yen Sid theorized that Sora went back further into world, just like when he had been confronted by Organization XIII, only it was more possible that he traveled much deeper into the darkness and the nightmares that lied there in the world. There wasn't much else that they were able to do, and it was unnerving but they had to believe in Sora—believe that when the time came he would return on his own with that same ridiculously bright smile of his and lively personality.

Sure, everyone could have hope for the guy and pray but Lea felt otherwise. For him, it was like history was repeating itself and it tortured him. He honestly would have ran and dove into the realm of sleep to look for him but dropping his training to become a keyblade master in order to bring Sora back was something both Riku and Yen Sid were set against. It would, 'disrupt and slow down your training for the upcoming war' they said, which they believed was sure to arouse in the future from now and it pissed him off. He made a promise and was intending to keep it—but being forced to wait and train was hindering his ability to uphold that promise.

Thinking about his conversation with the blond haired boy with sun kissed skin and deep ocean blue eyes on the Twilight Town clock tower; he remembered the boy's words as clear as day. They echoed in the red head's mind, resonating with each memory that seemed to flash through his wake. The laughter, their shared smiles, the good times and the bad, his sacrifices and tears, their partings and promises to meet in the next life but also the slow procedure in his reawakening, the very last moment in time that they were together.

'Hey, Axel. You haven't forgotten?' That voice, deep and yet not at the same time—caught between the lines of being a boy and becoming a man.

'Hm, what?'

'You made us a promise.' Again, that beautiful voice, escaping between plush lips so soft he would die to kiss.

'I did?'

'That you'd always be there… to bring us back.' The memories were blurred, but he remembered saying that, and it was true, he would, no matter what.

'Yeah…'

'Got it memorized?' His catch phrase, now that was just too cute he thought.

'Best friend's forever.' it was the very last thing the red head said before the scenery around him began to fade and in moments, he had awaken from his long sleep.

The one person he had always been desperately trying to reach out to—always chasing no matter where they went, the only person who passed through his consciousness once he had suddenly awoken, "Roxas…" Lea whispered almost breathlessly, the name rolling beautifully on his tongue, as if only he and he alone had the ability to utter the boy's name flawlessly as it sent his body into a strange and sad state of nostalgia.

Even though the red head's back was still turned to him, Riku heard the name he uttered. Roxas, the boy he fought in order to help Sora regain himself, the boy he forced into the fake Twilight Town. He didn't know the blond personally despite his similarities and ties to Sora. He only thought of him as a shell, a being that was not only without a heart but was meant as something that shouldn't have been allowed to exist. But he was wrong, Roxas had been more than that, Axel too and Namine as well. They proved their worth to him, that they were more than just shells and heartless beings and to some degree he regretted his treatment towards Roxas.

Lea understood him better than anyone, what it was like to give everything up for that one person. Lea was just like him, though he would probably never tell him nor admit it for a while. Maybe not now but perhaps in the future, Riku would enlighten the red head about their similarities.

"You know, I think we should get back to Yen Sid's." Kairi finally spoke up, her once solemn expression now replaced with something a little bit more level headed and firm.

"I guess." Lea replied, giving his back a good stretch before allowing his keyblade to dissolve in his hand. "Wait, you know since its own our way back how about we stop for some sea salt ice cream? What do you say?"

"Again Lea?" Riku asked with a knowing smile.

"Of course! What better way to end the day than with sea salt ice cream!"

"If it makes you happy, I wouldn't mind having a sweet treat right about now." Kairi admitted.

"Then it's settled! We'll get ourselves some ice cream and watch the sunset on the clock tower before getting back to old Yen Sid!"

"Wow guys, don't blame me if you start to find yourselves gaining a few pounds with all the ice cream you two have been having after training lately." Riku shook his head without realizing the effect his words would have on the violet eyed girl.

Hearing what he said, Kairi stopped, slowly glaring daggers at her silver-haired companion, "Are you calling me fat, Riku?" she asked, her voice threatening and dark violet eyes piercing through his very being.

Instantly, Riku froze in his place, regretting his words now that the girl had him in her sights and was ready to tear him limb from limb.

Lea looked over his shoulder at the younger boy, giving him a sympathetic grin before whistling his nerves and embarrassment for the silverette away as he tried to ignore the looming argument that was sure to spur from the girl. Remembering his experiences with women, particularly Larxene and her short fuse, he held no real pity for the guy and was definitely not planning on saving his sorry ass. This, he believed would be an important lesson to learn for him and would be something better left not repeated ever again in the future.

Shaking his head, Lea sighed, chuckling softly as Kairi's voice heightened. But just as she began to grow vocally, Riku doing his best to plead for her forgiveness and submit defeat—the sky above them suddenly darkened, catching them all off guard.

The pair stopped their arguing, their heads looking up towards the graying clouds in the sky. Lea quickly turned his gaze from the two youngsters standing behind him to the sky just the same. This wasn't good he thought.

Like a nightmare, the dark gray clouds were growing—bigger and bigger with each second, lightning flickering left and right amongst the fluffs of condensed water vapor and dust. What was even more intriguing was how they were approaching them, encircling them in the fields as if the trio were the targets of this strange phenomenon.

Lea quickly summoned his keyblade, as did Riku and Kairi once they realized the situation they were in. He didn't know what exactly was going on and he didn't like waiting for whatever danger they were in to happen either.

"Riku…" Kairi murmured, her grip along the hilt of her weapon shaking. It wasn't that she was scared but she couldn't help it if the wind was blowing freezing air all around them.

Just as they were all getting into a fighting stance, the ground below their feet was assaulted by the color of black and it pooled, moving in all sorts of directions like a horde of insects. Several of the black meres erupted into dark lanky figures, eyes glowing bright yellow and menacing with bodies twitching unnaturally and fearsomely.

"They're Neoshadows!" Riku exclaimed.

"Pft, you forgot to mention those little buggers too!" Lea added, pointing out to the small midgets known as Shadows that began accumulating among the stronger heartless.

"Um guys…" Kairi's said slowly, her eyes locked onto the sky above them as her mouth gaped open in disbelief. There descending from the clouds was a huge pair of black legs that touched down on the earth and caused the ground to shake under its gruesome weight.

Kneeling down on its knees before finally coming into full view was a gigantic Darkside, and damn was it a sight to behold. Where the hell this army of heartless came from, the trio didn't know but they were definitely going to find their answer as the platoon of creatures made the first attack.

The Shadows were easy to take down as long as they didn't liquefy themselves into the ground to get away. The same went for the Neoshadows, but they were a completely different story. Those guys didn't just swipe their claws at the keyblade warriors and sink under their feet; they were fast, persistent and most of all aggressive compared to their smaller counterparts. The Darkside towering over them was no easy task to defeat either, since they were already having a tough time keeping up with the Neoshadows for Pete sakes. Worst of all about the big guy, was that it was fueling the army of Shadows that twitched their antennas and flooded the fields around them.

"They just keep multiplying! No matter how many of them we take out, there are more of them replacing each one we destroy!" Kairi cried, just barely managing to duck an attack from an oncoming swing of sharp claws.

"Don't think about! Just keep attacking!" Lea replied as he blocked a Neoshadow with the guard of his keyblade before pushing the monster back.

"Concentrate you guys!" Riku shouted at them, his keyblade making quick work of each heartless that threw themselves at him.

One after another, Riku slashed at the heartless with the flick of his wrist. Lea grinned, and with his free hand summoned a ball of fire in his hand which he sent flying towards the nearest Neoshadow. It thrilled him to no end and made him very happy to still be able to bend and summon the element of fire at will—and the pair with him knew how much he took pride in that.

"You pyro!" Kairi tried to joke, but her single moment of distraction sent her falling back.

"Kairi!" the silverette screamed as he went running towards his friend.

But the Neoshadows wouldn't let him go any further, and before he knew it, Riku was blocked off from the violet eyed girl.

"Lea! Do something!" Riku screamed, his arm swinging violently at the advancing squad of heartless just in time to block off an attack from them.

"Don't you think I'm trying!" the red head replied desperately, he himself trying to get to Kairi as well but how could he when these buggers were at his heels at every turn.

"Riku! Lea!"

"Kairi!" both boys screamed this time, the cries of their fallen companion filling the air.

Were they too late to get to her in time? This couldn't be happening! Why was this happening in the first place! All of these thoughts were running, rushing to understand what was going on and desperate to find answers. None of it made any sense! Just as they felt themselves being overpowered as well, rays of light shimmered in their wake, causing everything to suddenly come to a standstill. Was it Kairi?

"Kairi!" Riku exclaimed, his attacks now moving rapidly in another attempt to reach her.

There, standing in a small circular clearing surrounded by the stunned heartless with the said girl in their arms was a petite figure, clad in the black coat belonging to Organization Thirteen with their face hidden beneath the dark hood. Realizing what he was seeing Riku stopped; his aqua colored blue eyes as big as saucers. Lea's expression was no different to the silverette and he had to wonder, just who this person was.

"Y-you! Who are you!" Riku finally managed to say.

Sitting in the arms of her savior, Kairi was shocked, unable to bring herself to utter a single word. This person, were they apart of the Organization? Was this a set up in order to kidnap her again?

The figure didn't reply, instead they just stared in silence before the horde of heartless regained their composure and resumed the attack against the keyblade warriors. Completely surrounded, the mysterious hero summoned what looked to be light in their hands before shooting numerous spheres of it at the oncoming Neoshadows.

'So, they're an ally?' Lea thought, his keyblade swinging over the head of a Shadow before slicing it in half and moving onto the Neoshadow with arms stretching to towards him.

With only one hand available to fight, the stranger had no choice but to release the princess of light. Now free from the arms of her savior, Kairi proceeded to fight back once more.

All this time, the Darkside was left ignored, the group too preoccupied with the consuming amount of attention they had to have on the vicious Neoshadows or risk being ambushed by the persistent buggers. Having had enough standing there looking pretty, the Darkside finally began to make its move, eyes settled on the wild red head who was blasting one fire ball after another at his minions.

"Lea! Watch out!"

"Huh?"

Looming over them, the Darkside shot it's arm out towards Lea, and unfortunately for him he didn't see it coming and was too slow to get away as the gigantic heartless grabbed him around the waist from behind and began to lift him up into the air.

"Holy shit!"

"Lea!"

"Ah! What are you guys standing around there for?" Lea screamed and began swinging his keyblade in his hand in an attempt to somehow knick the Darkside's thick fingers around his body. But all of his actions proved useless and futile with the creature gripping him from right under his arms down to his thighs—leaving him most of his body immobile.

To his surprise, the cloaked figure below began concentrating their balls of light up at the Darkside but hat too wasn't enough to stop it either.

Being brought up to the heartless' tentacle covered face, Lea had to wonder if the thing was planning on swallowing him whole, and if so he did not want to know what the creature's mouth looked like under all the loose appendages flying around its head.

"G-guys!"

"Lea! Hold no!" Riku jumped into the air, landing on the back of a Neoshadow, he pushed himself up again into the air with as much strength as he could muster, using the creature's body below his feet as a jumping board in order to propel himself at the Darkside.

Heading straight for the monsterous heartless, Riku did not anticipate it to attack him with its free hand and send him flying back down into the ground. Realizing that Riku was beaten back, Lea looked up at the Darkside, his emerald green eyes glaring venomously now.

"You little—you're gonna pay!" sparks of fired quickly collected in his free hand, aiming an open palm at the creature's face, Lea gave out a battle cry, "Take some of this!" he screamed as he shot a large blast of fire at the Darkside's unprotected face.

Though it was thrown off guard, it took much more than that to bring a heartless as big as him down. Being attacked with fire based magic by the red head; the Darkside retaliated by tightening its grip around the red head's abdomen and squeezing him tightly. Having the breath knocked out of him, Lea choked back a scream as he began gasping for air.

'This isn't good! It's getting hard to breathe!' he screamed in his head, 'At this rate I'm going to be crushed! And if my innards explode out of me!—well that's just not going to be pretty!'

The next thing that happened felt like a dream and it left him breathless as Lea stared in awe at the black coated figure that came to his rescue, falling from above holding two keyblades; the Oathkeeper and Oblivion. Gripping the decorative keys tightly in their hands, they twirled and spun both weapons at the Darkside's face, causing the heartless to thrash back in agony and loosen its hold on the red head. An explosion of light was the last attack that it took from the mysterious hero for the Darkside to go crashing down into the grass—body dissolving in large particles of whispered shadows that ascended into the air like smoke.

Lea thought that if the Darkside hadn't killed him than the fall back down to the earth would but to his relief, the same hooded figure that saved him from being squeezed to death broke his fall and he was placed gently on the ground.

Despite the big boss being gone, the rest of the small fry were still alive and kicking and they kept themselves going at the group.

Breathing heavily, Lea slowly began to get up onto his feet, body swaying as the oxygen rushed up to his brain and gave him a nice whiplash of unsteadiness. Blinking back the speckles of white that danced across his vision, the dual wielder was jumping back and forth—protecting him and blocking each heartless that tried to get near him.

"Lea!" Kairi cried out from a distance, her head peering over the dozens of Neoshadow's that were still left in the vacancy. "Are you alright?"

"Y-yeah—Yeah!" he finally managed to croak out before summoning his own keyblade once more.

The red head's steps were still slow, and he struggled a bit to find his footing without feeling so damn dizzy. Biting his lower lip in anticipation, Lea gasped suddenly when his rescuer's back pressed up against his own. Back to back, surrounded by the enemy, he couldn't have pictured a perfect battle scene like this any better.

"This time, I'm going to protect you." The voice behind him said, words ringing loud and clear in his ears before throwing themselves forward, Oathkeeper and Oblivion dancing hand in hand as one heartless after another was destroyed by their blades.

Lea himself ran forward once more, bright hot flames erupting across the length of his keyblade as he swung swift and true. That voice, the one that haunted him every second of every day—he knew, from the moment those all too familiar keyblades appeared.

Throwing both keyblades into the air, the hooded stranger slowly levitated off of the ground, thirteen pillars of light striking down onto the earth around him. From then his devastating attack began and he showered the open fields with the brightness and control of his technique. Moving at a speed that was inhuman and so fast that it left behind flares of light that blinded everyone in his path, the pillars—large shields which he then sent out in all directions instantly destroyed all Neoshadow's and Shadow's alike in their wake.

Everyone was forced to stop in their tracks, unable to keep up in their own fights as this powerful warrior outshined them all. Stunned and confused, some heartless tried to get away, while others—attracted to this new opponent ran at him, but all were met by the same fate and soon the heartless were reduced to nothing but disintegrating beings and ash.

There was nothing left now, the heartless gone and defeated. In the fields the five warriors all stood together, three of them trying to comprehend just what had happened. The two figures dressed in the Organization coat reunited and it took a Lea a second to realize that they were leaving now. But no, he wouldn't let it happen, he couldn't, not yet.

Seeing that the danger was over, the mystery boy allowed his keyblades to shrink back. Looking over to his partner, he gave them a nod before they proceeded to reach out into the air and open the corridor of darkness. Just before both began to approach the swirling vortex, Lea's hand shot out to grasp his, successfully stopping him from taking another step forward. The other hooded figure stopped as well, only tilting their head in wonder, but behind their concealed face, they smiled sadly.

"Don't go! Please!" Lea begged, his fingers curling tightly around the other's wrist, "It's you isn't it? Roxas…"

The shorter of the two didn't respond but Lea wasn't planning on stopping just there. Releasing the cloaked figure's wrist, Lea quickly wrapped strong arms around the other's shoulders, his hands gripping the front of their cloak as he buried his face into the back of their head.

"Roxas…" he said again, pulling the body closer to his and pressing their back against his chest. "Please, don't go, don't go… not yet…"

They stood that way together, in silence for a very long time, all eyes now glued onto the couple but Lea didn't care as long as he could have this person in his arms for as long as he could hold on to them. Nuzzling his cheek against the leather surface of the black coat, he tried desperately to squeeze back the tears that were threatening to fall from his acid green eyes but his attempts were in vain as his body began to shake.

Feeling the body held down in his embrace begin to squirm, Lea didn't want to let go—not yet but the shorter figure proved itself stronger for a moment and he managed to pry the red head's arms off and step away, only to slowly turn around to face him.

Lea stood back, tears running freely down his face now as he watched the person before him finally lift their hood up to reveal themselves to him. Though their eyes remained closed, he recognized the blond hair that was spiked off to the side, that tan colored skin too and then when their eyelids finally opened, emerald green at long last met those deep ocean blue pools that were always filled with emotion and life.

"Hey, Axel…"

He choked back a sob, his movements slow at first before throwing his arms back around the other's shoulders again and bringing them together once more into an even tighter embrace than before. His old name, the boy uttered the name of his nobody, but he didn't care, he didn't care as long as he was at least recognized some way or another, "Oh god… oh my god… Roxas…" he cried, tears falling faster now.

"Axel…" the petite blond sighed contently, his slender arms reaching up and wrapping around the other's back to return the hug just as tightly. Burying his head against the red head's chest, he rubbed his cheek against the fabric of his shirt.

"Roxas..." Lea said again. Pulling back a distance to look down at the face that all but clouded his mind and heart for so long, he inched low until he pressed his lips against the boy's forehead.

Reveling in the older male's sweet kiss on his temple, Roxas smiled, his cheeks developing a rosy tint to them as he got up on his toes to graze his lips against the salty tears on the red head's face. Pressing his lips against the cold wet cheeks, he tasted the other's tears and went ahead to kiss them away. That one kiss led to another and then another, going from his cheeks, his neck, chin and forehead. And Roxas kept going until finally he was only a breath away from closing the distance between them.

From his memories, he couldn't remember a time when the blond was as affectionate as he was now, but Lea didn't care and he found himself intoxicated by the younger boy's actions. He was so close to the other's lips now, and seeing Roxas stare up at him with those clouded blue eyes, mouth gaping slightly—Lea took his chance and dove in for a kiss.

They shared a hungry and aggressive kiss. Tongues were moving, dancing, pushing back and forth for dominance over the other. They ravished each other in their arms, ignoring the small audience they had in favor of immersing themselves with only their touch and feelings. Hands went and wrapped around the other's neck, hair was pulled and they moaned openly in the other's mouths.

As fast as it happened, their profound and deep kisses began to shrink, reduced to mere pecks and soft caresses until finally the blond pulled away all together, causing Lea to moan at the loss of contact with the younger boy. Diving back down in hopes of being met with the other's lips once more, the red head blinked confusedly when Roxas placed a gentle hand against his chest to halt his advances.

It was time for the blond to go and he didn't want that, but it was the inevitable, and he knew despite how strong he yearned for it not to come true.

Slowly releasing his young partner, Lea stepped back until they stood a distance from each other. He wanted to bring Roxas close to him again, hold onto him tightly and never ever let go but fate was cruel to him, torturing him this way in trying to separate him from this boy—this beautiful boy.

Just as the anticipation of saying their goodbyes was creeping in on the couple, the blonde's companion finally walked over and placed their hand on his shoulder. Squeezing it reassuringly, they pulled back their hood for everyone to see her—a small girl with shoulder length black hair and the same shade of blue eyes as Roxas. She smiled at everyone, looking especially to Roxas with understanding.

Nodding at her, he turned back towards the red head before reaching out to stroke a gloved hand against his cheek. Lea instantly leaned into the other's touch, trying to cement it into his memory.

The corridor of darkness was left forgotten, dissolving away from existence, and everything else around them started to blur from Lea's sight. The unnamed girl smiled softly, and he didn't understand why but it seemed to him that she was sad and he didn't like that. Suddenly her image began to fade, her body glowing as she melted away into the air. Riku and Kairi too, were gone, nowhere to be seen and though it was unnerving, Lea couldn't bring himself to focus on anything else except Roxas.

Afraid that he too would disappear just like them, Lea threw himself forward to clutch the short boy to his body. He couldn't let him go, he didn't want to. But his fears were realized once he felt the heaviness of Roxas' body begin to lessen.

"No… No! Please! Roxas! Don't go! Don't disappear!"

All the blond haired boy could do was look up at him with those sad blue eyes of his, mouth opening and closing and yet not saying anything as his body too began to discolor and become transparent like the rest of their surroundings.

"No…" Lea began to cry, his hands caressing gently against the blonde's pale ghostly cheeks.

Roxas shook his head, "Axel…" he said, his own hands running up to wrap around the red head's neck, "You have to let me go…"

"I can't do that, I just can't! Please Roxas, don't do this!"

With what little strength he had left in him, Roxas brought their lips together one last time, the red head's tears slipping down only to fall right through the blonde's fading body. Though Lea couldn't physically feel Roxas, he held him delicately and as closely to his body as he possibly could, just imagining, remembering his touch to the fullest.

"I know, you'll be there for me… Axel… I believe in you." He whispered softly, voice almost too low for Lea to hear as his cries shook his body even more. "Until the next life…"

And then, just like that Lea stood there alone and Roxas, Roxas was gone. The next thing that Lea knew was that he felt himself sinking into the ground before feeling a strong tug pulling him back. Down, down, down he went until he was falling head first in an ocean of darkness. It was all he could see.

"Let's meet again, in the next life…" Lea said into the blackness as he continued to free fall. Chuckling to himself, he closed his eyes, his mind drifting in and out of consciousness.

"Yeah, I'll be waiting…" A voice replied back to him, and he smiled sadly, he too disappearing like the rest of them.

"ROXAS!" Lea screamed at the top of his lungs as he shot up from his bed. Panting for each intake of air, he slowly registered that he was in a room, his bedroom, and not too far from him, just standing at the foot of his mattress was Riku with a peculiar yet shocked expression on his face.

"Did you have nightmare?" Riku asked as he cautiously made his way towards the side table of the red head's room to pick up a small hand towel before soaking it in a bowl of water. "I'm assuming so since you just screamed out Roxas' name…"

Lea stared blankly, unable to bring himself to speak at first. 'So, it was all a dream in the end?' he wondered, feeling both relieved but saddened, "Y-yeah, I did. It wasn't—"

"You don't have to tell me. Now lie down, we can't have you overexert yourself again." Riku said as he wrung the towel out and folded it.

Doing as he was told, Lea took to looking up at the ceiling. Soon the feel of a cold wet towel pressing against his forehead made him sigh contently, it felt like heaven as opposed to this throbbing headache he was experiencing.

"I know that becoming a keyblade master mean's everything to you right now but I don't think you should be pushing yourself so hard like this."

"You're telling me to take it slow?" Lea inquired, "You've got to be—look I don't have time for this…"

"What would Roxas say if he saw you battering yourself up so badly that you get sick huh? Tell me." Riku glared softly.

Chewing on his lip, Lea turned his head away from the silverette, "He'd get mad at me, maybe even give me a punch or two if he was angry enough… but he'd also be here with me, scolding me and taking care of me too…"

"Mmhmm… so my concern for you isn't any different from what he'd do."

"Yeah…"

"Just, take it easy Lea, for both Roxas' sake and mine."

"I'll try." He replied, "By the way, have you heard anything from Yen Sid about Sora?"

"No, nothing." The silverette looked down.

"I'm sure he'll be back soon, all we can do is just give him time." Lea yawned, though the words were easier said than done he regretted.

Nodding, Riku gave him one last look over before leaving the room silently without another word.

Staring out of his window, Lea found himself looking up at the setting sun. Slowly sitting up, the towel slid off of his forehead into his lap with a wet plop. He didn't care though, his emerald green eyes too focused on the blinding red and orange hues against the clashing shades of deep blues and purples emitting overhead. He thought of one person, and one person only, the name whispered loud enough only for him to hear. Though he knew saying the name wouldn't magically bring the said boy back to him, he couldn't help himself and he felt it needed to be said, even if he wasn't here to sit next to him and listen.

"Roxas… whether it's this life or the next, I'll always be there to bring you back, no matter what…"


End file.
